EnBW Postpones Investment Decision on German Offshore Wind Farm

Nov. 14 (Bloomberg) -- EnbW Energie Baden-Wuerttemberg AG,
Germany’s third-largest power supplier, postponed a decision to
invest more than 1.5 billion euros ($1.9 billion) in a wind farm
in the North Sea.

While the utility remains committed to the 500-megawatt
Hohe See project, it has halted negotiations with potential
suppliers until it’s clear when the farm would be connected to
the grid, EnBW said today in an e-mailed statement.

“We need legislative clarity and reliable conditions
before we make an investment decision of considerably above 1.5
billion euros,” Hans-Josef Zimmer, EnBW’s chief technology
officer, said in the statement.

The delay is a further setback to developers eager to meet
Germany’s target of 25 gigawatts of sea-based turbines by 2030.
It adds to pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government to
help end the delays. Dong Energy A/S said last month it
suspended work on a North Sea wind farm because the company
lacked a deal on connecting it to the grid.

Germany’s federal government may change the regulation of
wind-farm links. A draft bill, endorsed by Merkel’s cabinet in
August, is designed to end the delays and provide investment
security.